A Feminist Take on Gender Empowerment as Portrayed in King Lear
The precepts of a male dominated society have been the basis of natural culture and polite society throughout history. Misogynistic values and ideas have been directly mirrored from the time Shakespeare wrote King Lear, which was demonstrated in Elizabethan philosophy and the male dominance of society. As King Lear challenges gender roles it also alludes to an underlying root of sexism in society, wherein Shakespeare portrays a woman 's rise to power as an avenue to her inevitable downfall. Female characters in the play redefine femininity and masculinity as they choose which aspects of their sex they display and which aspects they mask, the men are portrayed to be the weaker …show more content…
Regan believes her husband is incapable of defending himself, so she takes the fate of the servant in her own hand and establishes her control by saying; “Give me thy sword- A peasant stand up thus?”(3.7.77). This alludes to the violent nature of her character, an association is made between the raw blood lust of masculinity and the necessity of protection that she seeks to provide. In essence, the roles have been reversed where an audience would look upon “masculinity defined by the necessity of protection” (Lumsdon 2000) they would see it portrayed in the wife; which is a foreign concept now but would be more so in Elizabethan times. Conclusively, this reversal of gender roles is also seen in Cordelia. Although, she encompasses the archetypal young maiden she also proves to be a powerful woman as she stands up to her father. This is seen in her dialogue with Lear as she says “I loved your majesty according to my bond, no more nor less.” (1.1.92). In the division of the kingdom Cordelia refuses to partake in her father 's love test, this demonstrates her rebellion against a parental figure and male authority. Rebellion was something that was unheard of at the time, “To stray from one’s father or any man is the ultimate defiance” (Gilles 2009) this is still seen in society today where to question a man’s motives is to emasculate him. The notions surrounding the empowerment of …show more content…
The male characters accentuate the ignorance of men surrounding women in the play as they comment on the female figure. As emphasized by Kate Downey in her thesis of Speech, Power, and Gender in King Lear it is apparent the female figure was used many times as a source of weakness, as basic female anatomy was described to the extent of demonic. This is proven as Lear says “Down from the waist they are centaurs, though women all above. But to the girdle to the Gods Inherit, beneath all the fiends; there 's hell, there 's darkness, there is the sulphurous pit, burning, scalding, stench, consumption!” (4.6.122-127). Lear clearly states that women are relatively normal waist up but all that is under is filled with darkness and hell. This commentary on a woman develops the notion that men are incompetent when it comes to actualization of their female counterparts. The language used such as “darkness”, “scalding” and “stench” further exemplifies the sexism in King Lear as a woman’s genitalia is a place of hostility which is also a parallel to the depths of hell as the language reflects that of the Bible in its depiction of hell. Speaking so boldly on the vagina is something that was unheard of as the vagina was considered “taboo and unnatural” to those in Elizabethan society (Downey 2013) Furthermore, this disfigurement of a woman 's body is seen in Edgar’s
The precepts of a male dominated society have been the basis of natural culture and polite society throughout history. Misogynistic values and ideas have been directly mirrored from the time Shakespeare wrote King Lear, which was demonstrated in Elizabethan philosophy and the male dominance of society. As King Lear challenges gender roles it also alludes to an underlying root of sexism in society, wherein Shakespeare portrays a woman 's rise to power as an avenue to her inevitable downfall. Female characters in the play redefine femininity and masculinity as they choose which aspects of their sex they display and which aspects they mask, the men are portrayed to be the weaker …show more content…
Regan believes her husband is incapable of defending himself, so she takes the fate of the servant in her own hand and establishes her control by saying; “Give me thy sword- A peasant stand up thus?”(3.7.77). This alludes to the violent nature of her character, an association is made between the raw blood lust of masculinity and the necessity of protection that she seeks to provide. In essence, the roles have been reversed where an audience would look upon “masculinity defined by the necessity of protection” (Lumsdon 2000) they would see it portrayed in the wife; which is a foreign concept now but would be more so in Elizabethan times. Conclusively, this reversal of gender roles is also seen in Cordelia. Although, she encompasses the archetypal young maiden she also proves to be a powerful woman as she stands up to her father. This is seen in her dialogue with Lear as she says “I loved your majesty according to my bond, no more nor less.” (1.1.92). In the division of the kingdom Cordelia refuses to partake in her father 's love test, this demonstrates her rebellion against a parental figure and male authority. Rebellion was something that was unheard of at the time, “To stray from one’s father or any man is the ultimate defiance” (Gilles 2009) this is still seen in society today where to question a man’s motives is to emasculate him. The notions surrounding the empowerment of …show more content…
The male characters accentuate the ignorance of men surrounding women in the play as they comment on the female figure. As emphasized by Kate Downey in her thesis of Speech, Power, and Gender in King Lear it is apparent the female figure was used many times as a source of weakness, as basic female anatomy was described to the extent of demonic. This is proven as Lear says “Down from the waist they are centaurs, though women all above. But to the girdle to the Gods Inherit, beneath all the fiends; there 's hell, there 's darkness, there is the sulphurous pit, burning, scalding, stench, consumption!” (4.6.122-127). Lear clearly states that women are relatively normal waist up but all that is under is filled with darkness and hell. This commentary on a woman develops the notion that men are incompetent when it comes to actualization of their female counterparts. The language used such as “darkness”, “scalding” and “stench” further exemplifies the sexism in King Lear as a woman’s genitalia is a place of hostility which is also a parallel to the depths of hell as the language reflects that of the Bible in its depiction of hell. Speaking so boldly on the vagina is something that was unheard of as the vagina was considered “taboo and unnatural” to those in Elizabethan society (Downey 2013) Furthermore, this disfigurement of a woman 's body is seen in Edgar’s